Figure 1-10 Transportation Volume by Railways from Local Municipal Entities

Note: The graph shows yearly totals of non-industrial waste incineration ash, non-industrial waste slag, and sludge from sewage disposal facilities. Dry cell batteries and fluorescent lights are not included.

Source: Japan Freight Railway Company

The role of distribution that ties the producer and the consumer is important for the development of cycloid type industries. In the same way as the arterial distribution system, when transporting waste material and circulative resources, it will be possible to build up a broad-based and efficient venous distribution system by combining transportation by trucks with that of ships and railways whose negative environmental load is low, and thus contribute to the foundation of a low carbon society. As the transportation of waste plastics, sewage sludge and incineration ashes to a cement plant, shredded tires as fuel to a paper-manufacturing company, shredder-dust to a metal recycling factory and PCB waste to a disposing facility are developing well, the volume of transportation of waste materials by railway from local municipal entities to factories are showing an upward trend. (Figure 1-10: Transportation Volume by Railways from Local Municipal Entities).

This is a transportation method attracting attention for its low environmental load.

## An implementation example in the industrial world for establishment of a sound material-cycle society

Responding to the call of the Japan Business Federation, the industrial world is, on an autonomous basis and in a positive manner through preparation of environmental voluntary action plans, working on the further promotion of 3Rs including the reduction of Industrial Waste disposal volumes, and aiming at the establishment of a sound material-cycle society through preparation of environmental voluntary action plans.

As a part of the activities, in December 1999, the Japan Business Federation set a goal for industry as a whole that “the final disposal volume of Industrial Waste in Year 2010 must be reduced by 75% of the actual volume of Year 1990” (the First Target). Through various endeavors, in Year 2002 industry successfully achieved the First Target ahead of schedule, and for several years running they have achieved the set targets. In March 2007, the target of Year 2010 was revised to reduce by 86% of the actual volume as of Year 1990 (the Second Target), with the resolution that they would “never increase the final disposal volume of Industrial Waste, regardless of any change to the economic situation in the future.”

The Japan Business Federation promotes an autonomous approach to industry and at the same time follows-up the state of implementation by industry every year and aims to improve the transparency of activities. According to the survey results in Year 2008, the final disposal volume of Industrial Waste of all industries in fiscal 2007 was 8.62 million tons, with which an 85.3% reduction was achieved compared to fiscal 1990.

## (1) Iron and steel industry

In the iron and steel industry, about 99% of the by-products involved in the production of steel are recycled, for use as cement raw material, civil engineering material and road building material. In addition, the Recycling rate of steel cans has met the target of “85% and more for

Column Figure 2 The final disposal volume of industrial waste of all industries

Source: The Japan Business Federation - Results of the Follow-up Survey Fiscal 2008, Concerning the Voluntary Action Plan on the Environment. [Building a recycling society series]